This invention relates to an embroidering system comprising one or more of embroidering machines connectable to a single control unit adapted to electronically control operation of the embroidering machines.
Such systematic arrangement for producing embroidery stitches on a fabric has been recently developed along with electronization of ordinary sewing machines. The control unit includes a memory storing data necessary for producing a number of patterns of embroidery stitches on the fabric which is supported and stretched within an embroidery frame mounted on the embroidering machine. One sequential set of the data can be selected by the operator to be read out from the memory of the control unit and transferred to the embroidering machine for producing the selected pattern of embroidery stitches.
There are provided different types of the embroidering machines to meet various uses that could be required by the users. The respective embroidering machines can only be operated under their inherent mode of operation. Therefore, when several embroidering machines having different modes of operation are used, several control units adapted to control the machines respectively should have been employed. That is, the control unit has been provided for exclusive use in connection with a specific type of the embroidering machine and has no compatibility with other types. Such look of compatability makes it financially difficult for a general domestic user to have the use of several different types of embroidering machines.
In order to obviate such disadvantages, there has been proposed a control unit compatible to several embroidering machines of different types all connectable to the control unit. This control unit includes switch means which is manually operated to select one of the embroidering machines to be energized so that data required to operate the selected one of the embroidering machines will be read out and transferred thereto. With this arrangement, however, it would often happen that the switch be misoperated to read out erroneous data, resulting in that the embroidering machine to which the erroneous data has been input would be driven out of order or in some case destroyed.